Johannes Nghidipo (22) was at a witchdoctor's house at Okapyakambidhi village in the Omusati Region on November 4 2005, where a graduation ceremony for witchdoctors was taking place.

When he woke up the next morning, both his feet were badly burnt and he did not know what had happened to him.

He has been in the Oshakati State Hospital since November 7.

At first it was feared that his feet might have to be amputated, but doctors have done their best to prevent this.

Nghidipo has lost all the toes on his left foot and his doctor, Erduy Fuentes, says they had to take skin grafts from his thigh to cover the terrible wounds.

Dr Fuentes says if all goes well, Nghidipo could go home in two weeks' time.

Nghidipo told The Namibian yesterday that he still cannot walk and experiences a lot of pain.

Army of worms on the offensive in city * TANJA BAUSE MILLIONS of armyworms are destroying the turf of the hockey fields next to the Hage Geingob Rugby Stadium in Olympia, Windhoek.

The damage to the field is clearly visible - the damaged parts are brown and unsightly whereas the rest of the field is still lush and green.

Armyworms wreak destruction by chewing off grass at ground level.

The adults are small, white moths that are active at night, when the female lays her eggs on grass stems.

She can lay up to 1 000 eggs in clusters of about 150 eggs each.

After hatching, the young larvae feed as a group on the grass blades.

The damage at this stage is slight and often goes unnoticed.

As the larvae increase in size, they require more food and can strip a lawn in no time.

Once the food source is depleted, they move on en masse, looking like a huge marching army - hence the name armyworms.

When feeding is completed, the larvae pupate just below the surface of the soil.

Adult moths emerge from the pupae after the first good rains and feed on nectar for seven to 10 days before beginning to lay eggs to start the cycle all over again.

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